Food for thought...Best Damn Stuffing Ever

I feel like this is sacrilege. This recipe is worth a gold mine and I'm publishing it for free. For all the world to read and use. But truly, it would be a disservice if you went without this recipe before Thanksgiving. Because once you've tasted this, you won't make another type of stuffing. EVER. AGAIN. I used to be an extremely picky eater (like creamy peanut butter and grape jelly on white bread everyday for lunch for my entire school career) and I never liked stuffing. Then my mother-in-law made this and the hubbs insisted I try it. I did. And then, then I was hooked.

Here's what you need to impress everyone you'll serve it to:

3 medium russet potatoes
1 large loaf of white bread (a few days old and stale)
1 clove garlic (minced)
1 medium onion (diced)
6-7 stalks of celery (diced)
1 pepper (green, pablano, what have you - diced)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1+ can chicken stock (if you're having turkey, use turkey broth!)
3 Tbsp Bell's Seasoning

Ready to start this? I am...and I just had it.

Step 1. Preheat your oven to 350 F. Wash down your potatoes to remove any dirt left on them. Then cut them into 1 inch cubes and set to boil on medium heat. No peeling required.

Step 2. While the potatoes are boiling, cut up all your veggies if you haven't already. In a large pan, add garlic, onion, celery, and  peppers along with that stick o' butter. Let the butter melt down and simmer veggies on medium heat.

Step 3. Step away from the stove and rip up that whole loaf of white bread. Put the pieces into a large mixing bowl. Take one can of chicken broth (or turkey!) and pour it over the bread. Fold the combo until there is no broth at the bottom of the bowl. The bread will reduce down a lot.

Step 4. At this point your potatoes and vegetables should be ready. If you celery is still a little crunchy, no worries, it's great in the stuffing. Drain the potatoes and remove to a medium mixing bowl. Turn off the vegetables and add these to the potatoes.

the pan should still have butter at the bottom make sure to remove that to your mixing bowl

Step 5. Mash those all together! You're basically making an incredibly chunky mashed potato. Be careful because this is extremely hot, especially if you're using a mixing bowl that's as thick as a stocking.

Step 6. Add your mashed potatoes to the larger mixing bowl with the bread. Fold the mixture until well combined.

Step 7. Add the Bell's seasoning and mix again until well blended. Add more chicken stock until the mixture resembles a pudding texture. Then we're ready to bake.

Step 8. Remove stuffing to a large casserole dish. Add more chicken stock on the top to form a "puddle." Cook uncovered for 60 minutes.

Step 9. The stuffing should be a nice crusty brown. Let sit for 10-15 minutes to cool before serving. Then enjoy. I won't even stop you when you throw away all your other recipes.

Just as a side note, this is best with the actual drippings from the turkey. But when it's not Thanksgiving, you make do with what you have.

Do you have any recipes that you swear by? What's your favorite recipe when you have a dinner get together?

Food for thought...Oreo Truffles

These are probably the easiest dessert ever and are absolutely fantastic. Me, the hater of cream cheese, I love them! I had them once at my mother-in-law’s and then I was hooked. Literally, you can’t just have one. Then you’re standing next to the bowl and it’s half gone because they pop so easily into your mouth. It’s almost a sickness. When I asked one of my good friends if I could bring anything to her son’s baptism get-together she replied almost instantaneously with those “oreo evil things.” Once you make them, you’ll understand why.

Here’s what you need:

1 pkg regular oreos (double stuffed not required)

1 8oz pkg philadelphia cream cheese

9+ squares of almond bark (this is key)

Step 1 . Take out the cream cheese and let it soften while you make the oreos into crumbs. This will help out with step 2. Take each sleeve of cookies and pop it into your food processor (no need to de-cream). Turn it on until they resemble coarse crumbs. Remove crumbs to a large mixing bowl. Repeat for the two remaining sleeves.

Step 2. Add the (now) softened cream cheese to the mixing bowl with oreo crumbs. Fold with a spatula (or dig right in with freshly washed hands) to combine oreos and cream cheese. The mixture should be slightly sticky with no loose crumbs.

Step 3. Get out a large cookie sheet (feel free to line it with parchment paper if you like). Scoop out approximately 1 tablespoon of the mixture and roll it into a ball. Place these on the cookie sheet. You should be able to make about 3 dozen. Place the cookie sheet into the freezer for at least one hour to harden the “dough.” I did mine overnight because I started late in the day.

Step 4. When ready to coat, break apart 9 squares of almond bark (I like to use white because it’s a nice contrast but the hubbs likes the brown because it’s so delicious). You can either heat them in a tiny crockpot or in a microwaveable bowl. If you go the microwave route, heat for 30 seconds, then stir. Repeat until the bark is melted and smooth. Be careful not to over cook! If you do you’ll end up with gross bark that’s not useable.

Step 5. When the bark is melted, remove the oreos from the freezer. Using a toothpick dip each ball into the melted bark and roll around until covered as desired. I’m lazy a fan of leaving a little at the top showing so I don’t coat it completely. Remove the now dipped ball back to the same cookie sheet. Repeat 35 more times

Step 6. Place the now dipped truffles back into the freezer for an additional hour to firm up.

Step 7. Serve the truffles in a large bowl and then stand far away, lest you gain twelve pounds by standing there devouring the whole bowl.

These are probably already in your recipe deck. But I want to make sure everyone knows about these habit forming snacks desserts. What do you think about them? Tasty?